Today's Features

Wildfire season in South Carolina normally starts in late winter and early spring.
Given the weather conditions, officials here are keeping a close eye on things, especially after a 15-acre pasture off Pardue Road burned Wednesday about 1 p.m.
Firefighters from Shiloh-Zion and Camp Creek volunteer fire departments, Lancaster County Fire Service and a S.C. Forestry Commission plow worked for about two hours to bring the blaze under control.

For many of us, balancing family, family life and career responsibilities, can be a high wire act.
Sometimes, I wonder how we get everything done that has to be.
Take Tuesday, for example. I was at Shiloh Unity ARP Church at 6 p.m. for an upcoming work-related article, and my wife, Jo, had to leave for her job at Springs Memorial Hospital about that same time.
Before the night was up, our daughter, Betty Jo, had a basketball game.

Your hard-working vehicle needs attention during cold weather, too. Below-freezing temperatures can especially take a toil on rubber and plastic parts, causing them to fail and break. Here are some basic maintenance tips to keep your car running in tip-top shape after last week’s snowstorm:

Moisture problems occur inside a home whenever there is an imbalance between the amount entering and exiting it and the structure’s capacity to store that moisture.
Moisture is generated through cooking, bathing, watering indoor plants, using unvented space heaters and washing clothes.
If this happens on a cold window pane, you will see the water run down and collect on the window sill, where it may damage the paint or rot the wood trim.
The water may even freeze, producing frost on the inside surface of the window.

Moisture problems occur inside a home whenever there is an imbalance between the amount entering and exiting it and the structure’s capacity to store that moisture.
Moisture is generated through cooking, bathing, watering indoor plants, using unvented space heaters and washing clothes.
If this happens on a cold window pane, you will see the water run down and collect on the window sill, where it may damage the paint or rot the wood trim.
The water may even freeze, producing frost on the inside surface of the window.

• Soups and stews always taste better if made a day or two in advance and reheated just before serving. You can also reduce the fat content by making soup the day before, chilling it and then scraping off the fat that rises to the top. If you don’t have time to chill the soup, use qcpaper towel to soak up oil from the surface.

• Use fresh ingredients if possible – Fresh ingredients are best, but some canned or frozen vegetables, such as peas, green beans and corn, will work.

After undergoing surgery for cancer in 2009, the 4 year old celebrated New Year’s Day at Disney World with his parents, David and Nicole, and brothers Cody, 7, and Braxton, 5, courtesy of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

For his parents, the vacation was an early wedding anniversary present. The Gordons were married Jan. 16, 2005.